From Wired News: An Air Force report is giving what analysts call the most detailed picture since the end of the Cold War of the Pentagon's efforts to turn outer space into a battlefield. For years, the American military has spoken in hints and whispers, if at all, about its plans to develop weapons in space. But the U.S. Air Force Transformation Flight Plan (PDF) changes all that. Released in November, the report makes U.S. dominance of the heavens a top Pentagon priority in the new century. And it runs through dozens of research programs designed to ensure that America can never be challenged in orbit -- from anti-satellite lasers to weapons that "would provide the capability to strike ground targets anywhere in the world from space." Read more here... Now the logical, sane me is scared to death, but the geeky little child in me is screaming COOL! I know this is scary as hell, but you have to admit that there is a cool factor within this... Oh, and before anyone starts saying that space based weapons are illegal, they aren't. Look at the 1967 Outer Space Treaty and you'll see that space based nuclear and other forms of mass destruction are illegal, not conventional weaponry.
Get real, Neil. Do you feel that way about suitcase nukes? The American military seem to think war is a computer game, sit in front of their monitors, press the button and the baddie blows up, no pain, all gain. They are seriously crazy. Very, very sick people.
This is going to start some trouble, a few countries are going to be pissed with the states for this, if i was tony blair i wouldnt be happy and hes bush's poodle! (i also would kill my self but thats another story) 'doc
Sounds like too many generals have been playing C&C when their bored in the office. Seriously tho, who do they think they are!!!. Fair enough placeing things over the us, to STOP people bombing america but to have things flying over other countries, thats just plain wrong imo
aparently you guys are forgetting how military advancement works. A attacks B, B gets better defence, A gets better offence and strikes again... over and over and over... has been this way for thousands of years, will continue to be this way until everyone is happy... which will be when everyone is dead.
No, actually I don't feel that way about suitcase nukes. I don't think that anything of any intrinsic value can come out of nukes over and above scientific understanding. Like I said, I'm scared to death about the prospects of what can happen with this whole space weapon thing, but as far as the tech and the "SciFi" factor is concerned, it's pretty cool - very Star Trekish.
Scary, but very cool at the same time... kind of. I don't believe the US will ever go insane and wipe out anyone else "for the sheer heck of it" (i know a lot of people will disagree). I just hope it acts as a deterrant more than anything! If not, Ubermich probably has it right
Ever seen Dr Strangelove or How I Learned To Stop Fearing and Love the Bomb? Just replace "commies" with "rag-heads" or "charlie" and you'd have the same scenario... The thought may be frightening, but there's no stopping it, so what's the point in worrying about it. You can bitch, whine, and moan all you want about it but that doesn't mean you'll bring peace to the world. So you can sit there and worry about what might happen, or you can let the people who have control over it do what will be done and just live your life.
Well, think of this then. The US is the only country with a GPS system. Europe is going to launch one too. It is supposed to be more advanced etc etc. The US has an enemy, but the enemy doesnt use GPS but Gallileo. The US needs the edge, and destroys Gallileo from space. And there is nothing we Europeans can do about it. Thankyou very much America.
actually I dont think its such a bad idea, and hope it becomes a reality. It can be usefull of other situations that can benefit the world as we know it. I allready added a similar post in another thread before I saw this one. rather than copy/paste it, and reposting and wasting server space (like text uses massive space anyways he he he) I'm taking the lazy way out this round. http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=52585
not really. if it were a real deterrant we wouldnt be in our cat and mouse hunt with terrorism. I think they see the U.S. as all show and no go when nukes are involved. Thankfully we havent come to using any since WWII, we got pretty close in the 60s though. If we did end up using our arsenal for the hunt, it would just make other countries mad and hate us even more, or worse turn long time allies against eachother.. just not cool at all.
if anyone wanted to take america down, it would have to be its own citizens, and I think if bush gets re-elected, it just might make a lot more people want it to happen.
hope they have room for sunscreen, it will be needed seriously I dont like the idea of such devices, but given how unconventional raging war has become with recent times when it comes to terrorist organisations and the like, they perfer to use tactics that are just like kicking below the belt in a boxing match, they are a very real danger for anyone who isn't on the terrorist orginisations A list. Some real sick twisted nutcase came up with that idea if you ask me.but you diddn't so ill shut up now not the case what so ever. If our military thought that way, Iraq, and Afganastan would have been incinerated by now. By not pressing the perverbial red launch button and sending troops instead just goes to show that we wont step to their level and kill inocent people intentionally like other organisations have done. not just in the US has these issues with suicidal terrorist organisations. its like a plague on civilisation by crasy idealists that dont like what equallity, freedom, stand for, or they could be jealouse at the fact they cant seem to get out of the 3rd world country catagory even though their one of the oldest civilisations on earth besides the chinese, and hate these new young countries like the U.S. for developing faster then they have beem able too. like a bad case of penis envy I tell ya. we have airconditioning, indoor plumbing, cold clear refreshing water, and they want it too, but with no electricity, you cant have Air conditioning, plus the dust and dirt will clog the hell out of the filters, indoor plumbing? well some want some dont, clean water. they do need, but cant break the habbit of bathing with their livestock, or even use some of the abundant sand and make some nice glass tubes, and beakers to boil the dirty water, collect the steam in the glass tubes, as the steem cools and condences.. viola clean drinking water. They have the smarts to think of ways to terrorise other civilisations and counties with original, and well planned means of doing so. rather than act against others use their brains to improve their conditions first. Our military does not come off sick or crazy at all, compared to the ones that would kill the inocent because of how f-ed up it is in their country and wont change it and make it a better place to live. yay developed countries
nice point, hopefully it wont come to another civil war ever again. But with some of what bush is meddeling in (same sex marriages/religion based laws main example.. please dont start talking of this issue here, I used it an an example only ) he lost my vote reeal fast. plus the suppport of alot of people that I know as well. If he is re elected I am tempted to bust out my electric hedge trimmer, and trim me a bush or two
I agree with that. I don't really think it is something we need to have. We aren't fighting any nations with trillions of dollars invested in weapons, we are fighting small bands of terrorists. Something like this proposal could go be hijacked/hacked. I only hope that those terrorist think that NJ is a very pitiful state not worth destroying...
Maybe we are now but what about 5 years from now or 10 or 20?? Things on the world scene change by the second. One min we can be fighting what we think to be roaming bands of terrorist, next thing it becomes us fighting a larger unit back by a larger countries government. Peoples openions also change by the second. Those who boo Bush now will be singing his praises years down the road if this weapon systems stops a major US city from being attacked and keeps thousands if not millions alive. If our military was "sick and crazy" we could have just as easily carpet bombed iraq and had close to the same effect as sending in millions of dollars worth of guide bombs that saved many more civillians lives than they took... Weapons are just like computers...Theres always that one person that has to have the newest, fastest, greatest computer ever just to be able to say that their computer can crunch seti faster than yours...
